Just How Happy Is Zappy?

Zach is a happy baby. He screamed when he was first born, mad to be removed from his cozy womb. And then he stopped and was quiet. Just observed the world. I didn't hear another cry until he was almost 12 weeks old. He had spent the morning at daycare, his first time away from hime as I prepared to go back to work. I was doing dishes while he napped. I turned off the water because I thought I heard a noise. I did but didn't recognize it so I went to investigate. Quickly realized that this foreign sound was my baby's cry. Teagan taught us love. Zach has taught us joy. Just how happy is our Zappy? He laughs himself to sleep. Really. I just figured it out last night. We do bathtime with sis and then it's off to mom and dad's room to nurse and go to sleep before being put in his crib. For the past few weeks, he has developed a new pattern. He nurses on one side and then rolls to the bed, cuddles with his blanket and sucks his thumb, and then demands more milk. We nurse on the other side. He rolls to the bed, gets his blankie, sucks his thumb, seems about to go to sleep and then... his head pops up, his eyes catch mine, this huge grin breaks out on his face, and he starts laughing. Soon he is sitting up, smacking my hands or grabbing my nose, cracking up the entire time. Every few minutes, he stops for a rest. Blankie, thumb. And then sits up, stands by me, towering over me, cracking up laughing. Eventually, the blankie and thumb win and he falls asleep with a grin on his face. Until last night, I wasn't sure what was going on. Some nights, I treated it like a problem and would tag out with Jeff so that Daddy would get him to sleep. Some nights, I just figured he was burning off that last bit of energy and would fall asleep eventually. But now I know the truth. He isn't trying to avoid sleep. He isn't just squeezing in extra playtime. He is laughing himself to sleep. He is so filled with joy that it bubbles out until his last waking moment of the day. What a blessing!